Week in Gaming: Who won E3? Is Destiny any good? And where the hell is my Metroid?

“You are shaping the future of Xbox and we are better for it.” As Microsoft kicked off another E3, the words of Xbox head Phil Spencer were massively significant. Microsoft has spent the last 12 months backtracking, fixing and cleaning up the mess that last year’s show left, but for perhaps the first time ever it felt like the company was able to stand up and focus on what mattered most: the games.

Yes it was big, it was loud, it opened with Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare and made a big song and dance about the Halo: Master Chief Collection.

But there were some more interesting highlights to punctuate the usual suspects. Sunset Overdrive, Insomniac Games’ Tony-Hawk-with-guns-em-up looks hella fun, and securing Playdead’s Limbo follow-up, Inside, as a timed-Xbox One was a smart play by Microsoft.

There may not have been any killer surprises but Microsoft’s renewed focus on games was welcomed, and hopefully a sign that there are better times ahead for the Xbox One. You can check out the rest of the E3 announcements here.

But even though Microsoft gave us 90 minutes of total gaming carnage, Sony somehow managed to top it. From Little Big Planet 3 to Bloodborne – the game previously known as Project Beast – Sony delighted fans by knocking out hit after hit, topping it off with a show-stealing trailer for No Man’s Sky. And how could we forget the revival of Grim Fandango?

And while we weren’t convinced by the rumours, but GTA 5 for next-gen consoles (and PC) was indeed announced at this year’s E3 – and Sony was the one to reveal it.

And when Sony wasn’t announcing exclusives, it was telling us why the cross-platform games will be better on PS4. Destiny will be available first on PlayStation 4, Batman: Arkham Knight, Diablo 3 and Far Cry 4 will all have exclusive content on the PlayStation 4.

In a time where more games than ever are found across multiple platforms, it’s a clever move from Sony to keep a grasp on its early lead over Xbox.

To our dismay, The Last Guardian was still MIA. But Sony has since promised that the game remains in development, so all fears of the project being stealth killed were thankfully put to rest. Maybe Gamescom?

And what about U?

So where did that leave Nintendo? Without a press conference and out of mind? Far from it. Nintendo did E3 on its own terms and came out looking stronger than it has in years. Its pre-recorded presser was easily the most entertaining of the big three, opening with Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata and Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aime literally fighting it out.

It was a lesson of how to do PR right and, after last year’s disappointing show, went on to cram an impressive amount of previews into its 45-minute slot – not least of which was its open-world Zelda Wii U title.

Yoshida, Spencer – you have your work cut out for 2015.

Also joining the lineup was the return of Star Fox, new Yoshi and Kirby games, Mario Maker, the intriguing shooter Splatoon, and a lot more footage of Super Smash Bros.

Star Fox didn’t just represent a return of one of Nintendo’s most loved franchises, but proved that the company isn’t afraid of reviving some long-forgotten names. Some of us were crossing our fingers that Samus Aran might also make an appearance. While we were left bereft of a new Metroid game, Nintendo strongly hinted that at least one new game is being considered.

Speaking in an interview with Kotaku, general manager of Nintendo Software Planning & Development Shinya Takahashi said Nintendo was well aware of fans’ desire for a new game

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